Ford adds 1,400 workers to meet Fusion demand

With demand for its new Fusion surging, Ford has started additional production of the popular midsize car.

1,400 workers and a second shift at the automaker's Flat Rock assembly plant just outside of Detroit are enabling Ford to ramp up supply of a car that has helped Ford post its strongest U.S. sales since 2006.

This year, Ford sales in the U.S. have climbed 12.9 percent, outpacing the industry as a whole which is up 8.5 percent, according to AutoData.

Meanwhile, Ford's market share is up 0.6 percent to 16.2 percent, placing the automaker within 2 percent of General Motors, which has been the top selling automaker in the U.S. for decades.

Fusion gaining on Asian models

With Fusion sales up 13 percent this year, Ford finds itself wrestling with tight supply of a car it re-designed for this model year. In fact, in some parts of Florida and California, Ford is down to 12-16 days' supply of certain Fusion models.

Automakers typically like to have 60-65 days of supply of vehicles.

One market where Fusion sales are particularly strong is California, where the Ford brand has edged within 0.1 percent of catching the Honda brand for market share in the golden state.

With the supply of Fusions available expected to increase by 30 percent, many in the auto industry think Ford's top selling car can catch popular Asian models that have long dominated the American car market.

The Toyota (Tokyo Stock Exchange: 7203.T-JP) Camry is the number one car in America, but its sales are down slightly in 2013. Meanwhile, the Fusion is the fifth best-selling car in the U.S. this year.

CNBC

CNBC is the recognized world leader in business news, providing real-time financial market coverage and business information to nearly 800 million homes worldwide, with headquarters on 3 continents and 20 bureaus around the globe. Award-winning journalists provide content on TV as well as online - where cnbc.com is the #1 non-portal business and news website. Our goal is for our consumers to Capitalize on CNBC - to increase their knowledge and profit from it. We want to make them the smartest people in the room; keep them ahead of the curve; make them members of an elite club.
CNBC. First in Business Worldwide.